An indie studio has claimed that its game was rejected from Steam because it had an old Greenlight page for the title, and Valve "didn't want to send the message that indies can seek out publishers to bypass Steam Greenlight."

However, when it came time to contact Valve about putting the game on Steam, Maulbeck was told that Paranautical Activity could not be directly published through Adult Swim, and that the team would have to go through Steam Greenlight first.

That's because Maulbeck had built a Greenlight page for the game many months before, but had then abandoned it once Adult Swim expressed their interest in publishing the game.

Normally, a developer would be able to bypass the Greenlight process if they have a publisher, such as Adult Swim, to bring their game directly to Steam.

Yet Valve apparently told Maulbeck that because his game already had a Greenlight page, it would send the message to other indie developers that they simply need to find a publisher to bypass the Greenlight process. For this reason, Maulbeck was told his team must go through the Greenlight process.

You can hear more in the video above. This story is developing, and Gamasutra has contacted Valve regarding these claims.

Update: Valve's Doug Lombardi has told Gamasutra, "We review Greenlight votes, reviews, and a variety of factors in the Greenlight process. However our message to indies regarding publishers is do it for your own reasons, but do not split your royalties with a publisher expecting an automatic 'Yes' on Greenlight."